The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plant, botanically known as Chrysanthemumxc3x97morifolium and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Watchxe2x80x99.
The new Chrysanthemum is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Salinas, Calif. and Alva, Fla. The objective of the breeding program is to create new cut Chrysanthemum cultivars having inflorescences with desirable colors and good form and substance.
The new Chrysanthemum originated from a cross made by the Inventor in April, 1997, in Salinas, Calif., of a proprietary Chrysanthemum seedling selection identified as code number E611, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent with a proprietary Chrysanthemum seedling selection identified as 3499, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent.
The cultivar Watch was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in Alva, Fla., in March, 1998. The selection of this plant was based on its desirable inflorescence color and good form and substance.
Asexual reproduction of the new Chrysanthemum by terminal cuttings taken in a controlled environment in Alva, Fla. since June, 1998, has shown that the unique features of this new Chrysanthemum are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.
Plants of the cultivar Watch have not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Watchxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Watchxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Upright cut Chrysanthemum that can be grown as a disbud or as a natural spray.
2. Large quilled decorative-type inflorescences that are about 11.2 cm in diameter when grown as a disbud and about 8.8 cm in diameter when grown as a natural spray.
3. Attractive bright yellow-colored inflorescences with reddish brown centers.
4. Response time about 62 days when grown as a disbud and about 66 to 68 days when grown as a natural spray.
5. Dark green foliage.
6. Reddish brown-colored stems.
7. Excellent postproduction longevity with inflorescences maintaining good substance and color for about three to four weeks in an interior environment.
Compared to plants of the female parent, the seedling selection identified as code number E611, plants of the new Chrysanthemum are about 8 to 10 cm taller and have larger inflorescences when grown as disbud. In addition, plants of the new Chrysanthemum and the female parent differ in ray floret color as plants of the female parent have white-colored inflorescences with cream-green centers.
Plants of the new Chrysanthemum and the male parent, the seedling selection identified as code number 3499, differ primarily in inflorescence form as inflorescences of the male parent are spooned daisy-types with three to four rows of ray florets and numberous disc florets. In addition, inflorescences of plants of the male parent do not have reddish brown centers.
Grown as a disbud, plants of the new Chrysanthemum can be compared to plants of the cultivar Mood, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 12,935. In side-by-side comparisons conducted by the Inventor in Madrid, Cundinamarca, Colombia, South America, plants of the new Chrysanthemum and the cultivar Mood differ in inflorescence coloration as ray florets of the cultivar Mood are golden bronze in color. In addition, plants of the new Chrysanthemum have smaller inflorescences than plants of the cultivar Mood.
Grown as a natural spray, plants of the new Chrysanthemum can be compared to plants of the cultivar Estrella, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 10,916. In side-by-side comparisons conducted by the Inventor in Madrid, Cundinamarca, Colombia, South America, plants of the cultivar Estrella are readily distinguishable from plants of the new Chrysanthemum by Esstrella""s solid yellow-colored and spooned-tipped ray florets.